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July 19, 2012 | 24 notes

Paul doesn’t say much, but comments as they wait for the food bank officials to decide whether they are eligible for a fourth, discretionary package that the sanctions system has been very hard for the family. “It cripples you. If it wasn’t for the food banks, I don’t know how I’d get it, other than steal it. They don’t understand what it’s going to be like when they take your money away from you, when you’ve got kids. It’s impossible.”

“You feel embarrassed coming here,” he adds, as a volunteer comes out of the stock room with two plastic bags and a box of food. They say thank you and hurry away, visibly uncomfortable.

From Food banks: a life on handouts - food banks are springing up across Britain to help struggling families. But is charity really the answer for people being let down by the state?

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